Boston scored six runs in the eighth to put away the Tigers and today will attempt to sweep their first road series of at least three games this season. The Tigers, though, got a bit of revenge in the eighth when the Sox made errors at second, shortstop, and third, and Kevin Youkilis left the game after being kicked on the right ankle by Josh Anderson.
"He was spectacular," said Mike Low ell, a longtime teammate of Beckett's who said last night was as good as he's seen the righthander. "I really thought - I know there's little bit of luck and everything - but he just had such good stuff, I really thought there was a chance he was going to throw a no-hitter. Once we got past the sixth, I was like, nine more outs. You're kind of counting them down."
Beckett was aiming for the fifth Sox no-hitter since 2001.
"I was locating [my fastball] well. I think I threw enough strikes early with my curveball to establish it," Beckett said. Asked how close he'd come to a no-hitter prior to last night, Beckett joked, "I think I took one into the second one time before this. I don't know. It wasn't very deep, I don't think."
As the Tigers stepped to the plate in the seventh inning, it appeared this would be their best chance, with their Nos. 2, 3, and 4 hitters coming up. But Placido Polanco flied to left, Magglio Ordonez walked, and Miguel Cabrera - who had entered the game tied with Youkilis for third in the majors in hitting at .358 - got himself down 0-2, before flying out to Jacoby Ellsbury in the right-center gap.
It was Granderson's turn, and he made the most of it. The center fielder lined a solid single into right field, the no-hitter going by the boards on a 2-and-1 pitch, what Beckett described as a 94-mile-per-hour sinker.
"He hit it good," said Beckett. "It wasn't a very good pitch."
That hardly diminished the incredible stuff the Sox ace was slinging, including an unfair curveball.
"He was throwing strike one when he was throwing offspeed," Lowell said. "Just hitting corners. It seemed like he really never missed over the middle. With his stuff, he's got enough velocity where he can miss over the middle a couple times and still get away with it. I don't think he gave too many guys any easy looks."
